


Those We've Left Behind Us

by Cate_9xBlue



Series: Rocks, Wolves, and the Moon [2]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)
Genre: Cass is done, Deep freckle sibling discussions, Eugene and Lance are a disaster duo, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Mostly Fluff, Protective psuedo siblings, Rapunzel Needs a Hug (Disney), Sad Varian (Disney), Set during my version of season 2, Varian Needs a Hug (Disney), Varian is emotional, Varian makes a decent therapist, Werewolf Curse, Werewolf Varian, missing people, sad feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-04
Updated: 2020-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:36:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27387304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cate_9xBlue/pseuds/Cate_9xBlue
Summary: The freckle siblings discuss missing loved ones.
Relationships: Rapunzel & Varian (Disney)
Series: Rocks, Wolves, and the Moon [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2000689
Comments: 11
Kudos: 78





	Those We've Left Behind Us

**Author's Note:**

> Some comments on the last fic were asking for more of Rapunzel's reaction to her father's actions, so I ended up writing this little oneshot. Hope it clears some stuff up!

* * *

Two weeks had passed since they’d left Corona’s border. Two weeks of nothing but each other’s company, in a dual compartment carriage on the dirt roads. The boys were in one room, girls in the other, but besides that there was very little privacy. People who hadn’t necessarily seen each other all the time were now spending every waking moment with each other, and it left for a lot to be discovered. 

Despite her strict schedule keeping attitude, Cass was  _ not  _ a morning person. Wake her before 7:30, and you could find yourself with a knife to your throat. She was a night owl, similar to her own animal companion of choice, and could often be found staying up into the late hours in the name of nightwatch. 

Eugene’s hair took far more time to prepare than he ever would have admitted. He often woke with awful bedhead, and would make sure he was awake before anyone else so he could use tons of gel and his specially made comb to get it just right. Varian had discovered this one morning after being woken by a night terror, and had crawled out of bed only to stumble onto the scene. No amount of begging could have silenced the boy’s laughter. 

Lance was an obnoxious snorer. He was able to keep both compartments awake throughout the night, sleeping peacefully while the rest slowly lost their minds. There had been several instances where Varian had to talk Eugene down from smothering his own best friend with a pillow, and even more where Rapunzel had to tackle Cass before she could reach her sword. 

Rapunzel whistled while she cooked. Relatively tame compared to some of the other irritating habits within the group, but when it was 7 am and everyone else was still half asleep, it could get a tad annoying. She’d whistle loud and long, sometimes entire songs while she prepared breakfast. Nothing anyone said could deter her from it, so eventually some of them (see: Cass) resorted to staying inside and holding a pillow over their ears, while others (see: Varian) just joined in, and it would end in a competition to see who could whistle louder. Rapunzel always won. 

One of the things everyone took more interest in was observing Varian. The boy had been relatively normal the first few days, a curious and bright young mind. He had his rough patches, thinking about his dad and missing home, but he was young, and it was only natural. It was the morning before when he’d woken up in a funk, two days before the full moon, that they’d really started to notice the changes that accompanied his curse. 

He’d woken late, pulled from sleep by a well-meaning Lance, and had promptly snapped at him. He’d followed the man outside, grumbling loudly about every little thing, and taken his breakfast without a please or thank you. They’d all been so baffled they hadn’t even known how to react. He’d scarfed down the meager meal, complained some more, and announced he was going to go back inside to read, and that  _ “if anybody bothers me, I’ll rip their face off.” _ The adults had sat there, shocked into silence and wondering what could have caused such a scene from a normally well-mannered boy, before Eugene had recalled aloud where they were in the lunar cycle. A collective groan had followed. 

_ Because nothing was better than a pubescent werewolf.  _

Lance had affectionately coined it as his “moon-strual cycle,” but upon the murderous glares from the girls and Varian, Eugene had helpfully renamed it “feeling moony.” They inferred after watching the boy that his moony moods premeditated the moon-brought changes by a few days, so they’d just have to ride it out. He moped around the campsite and bemoaned his every inconvenience, and everyone stayed out of his way. 

At least until it was unavoidable. 

“You’re kidding me,” Cass groaned, pinching her nose. “I let you two drive for  _ one hour,  _ and you managed to wreck?” The former thieves shrunk into themselves, exchanging a glance as they tried to ready their story. Cass growled, hand reaching for the hilt of her sword. “Give me one good reason I shouldn’t-“

“Hey hey hey!” Rapunzel interrupted, throwing herself between them. “It’s just one wheel. No harm done. It can easily be fixed. Right guys?”

“Yep.”

“Absolutely.”

“And do any of you know how to fix a wheel?” Cass inquired, folding her arms over her chest with a scowl. Rapunzel glanced over her shoulder at the boys, who both shook their heads slowly, fear in their eyes. 

“Eugene’s the one who missed the rock,” Lance blurted suddenly, earning a shocked squawk from his friend. 

“Excuse me?! What happened to going down together?”

“Every man for himself when it comes to cobra woman, man.”

“Well  _ Lance  _ is the one who had the reins!”

“YOU should have warned me!”

“I’m sure Varian does!” Rapunzel exclaimed, throwing her hands out. The two men silenced, throwing the swordswoman nervous smiles from behind the princess. Cass’s face pinched. 

“You sure that’s a good idea?”

“So he’s a little moody-“

“-moony-“ 

“-he won’t mind helping us out if it means we can be on our way,” she finished, ignoring Lance’s addition. “And besides, he’s not unreasonable! He’s still the same sweet, helpful Varian. He’s just not on his A game.” Cass pursed her lips, glancing back at the felons behind her best friend, before she rolled her eyes. 

“I don’t care, as long as this doesn’t set us back on the schedule. We’re supposed to hit Vardaros right  _ after  _ the full moon. If we’re thrown off here, the whole thing will be ruined.” They’d planned their schedule around the lunar cycle, so as to avoid being anywhere near towns or settlements during the full moon. They were hoping to avoid a redo of the incident in Corona. The young alchemist had only taken his sling off a few days before, and he still couldn’t lift things or even  _ sleep  _ comfortably. 

“It won’t,” Rapunzel assured her, already dancing around her friend and skipping over to the boys’ side of the carriage. She raised her hand to knock, before realizing that he’d probably just tell her to go away anyways, so she might as well just barge in. She pushed the door open carefully, only to freeze. Someone was sniffling inside. 

She looked down at Pascal, who was perched on her shoulder. He was frowning along with her, trying to peer past the door into the room. It was dark, in that none of the candles were lit, and only the light of the sun was peeking through the windows. She took a deep breath, pushing the door open more and stepping inside. The sniffling cut off abruptly, and there was shuffling. She found the source just in time for Varian to sit up in his bed, blanket wrapped around his shoulders. His eyes were puffy. 

“What do you want?” He asked defensively, not quite meeting her eyes. 

“Are you okay?” She queried, ignoring his question as she approached. “What’s the matter?”

“N-nothing,” he dismissed, pulling the blanket around him a bit tighter. “Leave me alone.”

“Varian,” she sighed, holding out a hand, but he flinched away. 

“I’m  _ fine _ , Rapunzel. Just leave me be.”

“What happened to us not having secrets between us anymore?” He huffed, turning away from her to glare at the wall. 

“You sound just like my dad,” he accused, only to deflate after his own comment, tears gathering in his eyes. He buried his face into the blanket, tugging it up over his head so he was just one fuzzy blue lump. Rapunzel sat down beside him, patiently waiting for him to initiate a conversation. When he said nothing, she said it for him. 

“You miss him, don’t you?”

“Of  _ course _ I miss him,” he snapped, only to slump into her and let out a shaky sob. “I miss him so much. I thought it’d get easier, b-but it’s only getting  _ harder. _ ”

“It’s normal to miss the people we love,” she explained, looping an arm around the blanketed shoulders. 

“I keep feeling like I shouldn’t have left,” he admitted, curling in on himself. “I just can’t shake this guilty feeling, like I was a coward to leave like that. To leave when we were only just starting to work things out. What if, when I get back, we’re right back where we started?”

“Your dad loves you, Varian,” she assured him, pulling him into her side. “If he didn’t think it was a good idea, he wouldn’t have encouraged you so much to come.”

“What if he wanted to get  _ rid of me _ ?” Varian asked, horrified at the thought. More hot tears leaked down his face. “He didn’t want to deal with this. Didn’t want to see what a- a  _ mess _ I’ve become.”

“Hey hey hey,” she interrupted. “No. Don’t even entertain the idea. He thought it was a good idea for you to go out on your own and see the world. Don’t look for nefarious reasoning that isn’t there.”

“Don’t tell me how to think,” he grumbled, only to catch himself with a groan. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” she chuckled. “I know it’s not your fault. Now, in a few days, if you’re still like this, I’ll know it’s because you hate me, but for now…” He snorted, leaning more comfortably into her shoulder. She hummed contentedly, tucking him close.

“Do you miss your parents?” He asked after a beat of silence, curious blue eyes peering up at her. She opened her mouth, only to close it again. It was an innocent enough question.  _ “Of course I do,” _ she wanted to say, but found herself stalling. A frown tugged at her lips. Varian shuffled a bit when he didn’t get an immediate response.

“I… don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” She shifted, pulling her knees up to her chest and leaning her head on top of Varian’s.

“I think I miss things  _ about  _ them,” she admitted slowly, trying to give him her most well thought out answer. “I miss my mom’s wisdom, and her advice. I miss her barging into my room at odd times to bring me a new book she thinks I’ll like. I miss the sound of her voice. I miss my dad’s hugs.” Her brow furrowed. “I think I miss my mom more than I do my dad. He’s just- he’s so  _ difficult. _ He’s bullheaded, stubborn, controlling. And I mean, I’ve only known the two of them a little less than a year. That doesn’t make for much emotional connecting time, especially with how busy they both are running the kingdom.”

“Huh.”

“Yeah,” she laughed breathlessly. “I mean, my dad says he’s trying to do what’s best for me, but then he turns around and disrespects my wishes. He doesn’t trust my judgement.”

“I think that’s a dad thing,” Varian joked, tucking his own knees to his chest.

“He almost had you killed, Varian,” she said dangerously. “After I told him over and over that everything could be solved in a non-violent way, he went behind my back and employed Creighton. And it almost cost your life.” She let out a shaky breath. “I don’t think I can ever forgive him for that. I can’t even imagine if he’d gotten his way-” She squeezed the boy tighter, willing the thoughts of him limp in her arms from her mind.

“Oh,” Varian breathed softly. He wordlessly wrapped one of his own arms around her, bringing the blanket around both of them.

“He justifies all these horrible actions with ‘protecting me’. The last time someone did that, I…” She inhaled sharply. “Last time, I ended up stuck in a tower for 18 years.”

“ _ Oh _ .” Varian’s arm tightened around her.

“Some days, they’re both so similar to me, I can hardly tell who’s who,” she admitted miserably. “Both of them said they loved me, both of them told me the world outside wasn’t safe, both of them made all the decisions _ for  _ me. And both of them almost killed someone I really care about in the name of my safety. B-but she  _ raised _ me. He just stepped in, claimed me, and took over my life. There are some days I feel like I miss Gothel more than I miss him.” She felt her throat closing painfully, choking on air. 

“It’s normal to miss the people we love,” Varian parroted softly. “Just- just because the love didn’t turn out to be real, doesn’t mean it didn’t feel real.”

“So what does that mean, I love my kidnapper more than my own father?”

“It means you’ve learned to be more cautious around those sorts of people, and you haven’t  _ let  _ yourself love your father, for fear of getting hurt again.” He paused. “And maybe… maybe he doesn’t deserve your love. That isn’t your fault, it’s his.”

“I thought I was supposed to be helping  _ you  _ feel better,” she said tiredly. “Now I’ve turned you into my therapist. Sorry.” His cheeks flushed and he ducked his head.

“It’s fine. You- you sounded like you needed to get that out.”

“So did you.” She sighed, turning her head so she could see him. “Feeling any better?”

“I guess,” he shrugged. He peeled himself off of her and shed the blanket. “What, uh, what did you come in here for, anyways?”

“OH! Right! Eugene and Lance busted the wheel. Do you know how to fix it?” He scoffed.

“Do I know how to fix it? Of course I do. Don’t let them drive again, though.”

“A simple enough request,” she agreed, standing and offering him her hand. He didn’t take it, but nodded with a smile anyways. 

“Lead the way,” he ordered, and she complied, leading him out of the carriage and around the front. He groaned when he saw the state of the wheel. 

“Still think you can fix it?”

“Yeah,” he sighed, rolling up his sleeves. “But I’m gonna need my toolbox.” Rapunzel nodded and ran off to collect it. “And you two are gonna need to hold this thing up while I work.” He pointed his finger at the men who were trying to retreat, pulling them both to a halt. They exchanged a nervous glance, but under the young teen’s withering glare, they conceded.

**Author's Note:**

> In this house, we do not like nor respect his royal travesty King Frederic of Corona.


End file.
